Illinois State has a rich history and tradition of athletic success, both from an individual and team perspective. The Redbirds have claimed a combined 130 Missouri Valley Conference regular-season and tournament championships since joining the conference during the 1981-82 academic year.

The Redbirds have also recorded great success on the national level, as Illinois State has claimed one team national championship and three individual national championships.

The 1969 Redbird baseball team claimed Illinois State's first, and only, team national championship, when it won the NCAA College Division (now Division II) National Championship. Under the direction of legendary head coach Duffy Bass, the 1969 Redbird baseball team went 33-5 overall.

Illinois State's first, and only, female national champion was Dee Wilson, who won the 1974 pentathlon in the Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW) national meet in Denton, Texas. The pentathlon, a supreme test of athletic ability, consists of the 100-meter hurdles, 200-meter dash, long jump, high jump and shot put. Wilson bettered her career marks in four of the five events during this grueling test of stamina at the national meet.

Former Redbird track and field star Tom Smith claimed Illinois State's second individual national title in 1987 when he won the outdoor high jump. He followed that up in 1988 with an NCAA Division I Outdoor National Championship Meet record jump of 7-07.75 feet.

Illinois State's most recent individual national championship came in 2002, as Christian Goy was crowned the NCAA Division I Indoor Mile National Champion with a school-record time of 3:59.43. Goy was a three-time All-American at Illinois State.

Below is a list of Illinois State's team and individual national championships by year: